


Milestones and Memories

by marmolady



Series: Endless Ending [22]
Category: Endless Summer (Visual Novel)
Genre: Choices, F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-24
Updated: 2019-06-24
Packaged: 2020-05-18 22:20:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,989
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19343800
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/marmolady/pseuds/marmolady
Summary: Post-ending.  Snippets of a life on La Huerta and beyond, the trials of a world collapsing around them now far in the past. And Taylor and Estela have company on this road they travel… their little girl, Liv.





	Milestones and Memories

Taylor stirred at the sound of a sharp cry which grew louder as she tried to adjust her eyes to the darkened room. She felt Estela move beside her, barely awake.

“’s okay,” she mumbled, groggy, “I’ve got her.”

In the little sidecar crib beside their bed, baby Liv was hungry and intent on making everyone know about it. Taylor sat up, and leaned across Estela to pick up the crying infant. As she gathered Liv to her chest, pushing her singlet up out the way, she glanced at the clock. Almost quarter-past-five. Not too bad. Only two wake-up calls during the night was nothing to sniff at.

Estela emitted a soft, rumbling groan as she rolled onto her side. She huddled closer, spooning her wife, and gazed up at her and the baby with tired eyes. Her hand reached out, resting tenderly on Liv’s back as Taylor tried to settle her. “…Shhhh… Livita…”

“Oh, sweetness…” Taylor murmured, rocking the child ever so gently, “it’s okay. Mommy’s got you.”

The cries became quiet grumbles, and within a couple of minutes, Liv settled to nurse. Taylor heaved a grateful sigh and grinned.

“Well, it’s getting easier. We’re practically pros at this.”

Through the two months since her birth, baby Liv had been the light of her mothers’ lives. Secluded in their home outside Elyys’tel, the initial bonding period had been idyllic, which was just as well, for sleep could be elusive.

“Hey?”

“Mmmhmm?”

“I might take her for a walk, watch the sun come up. It’s not as if she’ll go back to sleep now.”

Taylor instinctively snuggled in, defiant at the thought of leaving her lovely bed. She pointedly ignored her wife sniggering at her. “God, you  _are_ a maniac.”

“Are you coming?”

“Ugh. Fine. But I’ll be talking Liv into sleeping in tomorrow morning.”

Estela laughed, reaching for the sling she used to tie the baby against her chest, before pecking Taylor’s lips with a kiss. “Good luck with that. But, honest, you’ll feel better for getting up.”

The gentle breeze was cool, the stifling heat that was so synonymous with La Huerta’s tropical zones having retreated with the previous day. Even after just a few steps outside, Taylor knew that Estela had been completely right; this really felt nice. She took her hand and let herself be led up the lush hills beyond their home. From the highest point, they could look over Elyys’tel and across the sea to Sharktooth Isle. For a beautiful sunrise, there were few more impressive spots on the island.

Estela sat down carefully, cradling Liv with one arm. The baby squirmed against her chest, eyes wide and curious in response to the light of day slowly spilling into her world. Estela unwrapped her and held her up in her arms. “See, Mama Taylor? It’s a beautiful morning.”

With a giggle, Taylor nuzzled in and tickled Liv’s belly with kisses. She heard a sudden gasp, and looked up. “What?”

“Do that again!

“What is it?

“She just smiled! Oh my god, Taylor; it was the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen…”

“ _What? No!_  You do it- I wanna see!”

Having passed Liv to Taylor, Estela blew raspberries against the baby’s stomach. In no time at all, Liv’s small, rounded face was lit up with a wide smile- one that made Taylor’s heart race.

“Oh, my Livi! My happy girl! Is that funny? Is Mama ‘Stel funny?” she babbled in wonderment. “Oh, my girl, you have just the prettiest smile in the whole wide world!”

They tickled and played peekaboo, completely enraptured in the totally new feeling of connection with their little one. When they finally looked up from a beaming Liv, the sun had already emerged over the horizon.

“And you wanted to just stay in bed…” Estela couldn’t help but smirk.

“I’ll give you this one,” Taylor conceded, scooting closer and resting her head on her wife’s shoulder. “I don’t even mind that we missed the sunrise.”

Estela inhaled blissfully as she pressed a gentle kiss into Liv’s wispy hair, and then turned to Taylor. She whispered against her lips. “… _I’m so happy_ …”

Taylor smiled into a sweet kiss. “Guess that makes all three of us, hey? All these milestones… moments that we’ll never get back… I don’t wanna miss a single one…”

 

* * *

 

 

“Can the birthday girl do her trick?”

“ _Please,_ she is not a performing poodle!”

Diego pouted, but caught Taylor’s eye. She grinned discreetly and brought Liv over to him.

“If you don’t mind death glares from uptight Uncle Al, go ahead,” she said.

With a happy squeal, Diego leaned in close and started singing under his breath. “ _Na na na na na na na na…”_

 _“Batman!”_ Liv squeaked, her hands flying up in the air.

“Yaaaas, queen!”

Aleister rolled his eyes, amid cheers from everyone else.

“ _Na na na na na…”_

“Oh, for heaven’s sake!” he grumbled, as the whole group got in on the act.

_“Na na na na na na na na na na na…”_

A pause. All eyes on baby Liv.

“ _Baaaatmaaaan!”_

“Chyeah boi!”

Taylor giggled and kissed Liv’s beaming face. “You’re so clever, babygirl! Mama’s gonna go and get a special cake, just for Livi… can you say ‘cake’? ‘Ca-ake?”

The infant’s face was a picture of bewilderment.

“Okay, that one was a bit tricky. But I know you know this one…” She pointed towards Estela. “Who’s that? Is that Mama?”

Recognition lit up Liv’s eyes. “Ma-ma,” she said, flailing an arm out in the direction of her other mom, who caught it gently and kissed her fingers. Liv gave a happy chortle. She looked up at Taylor. “Mama!”

“That’s right, also Mama…”

“Mama… Mama… Mama… Mama… Batman…?” Liv babbled.

Aleister, walking by, scoffed. “Didn’t I say you would confuse her with this nonsense?”

Estela just laughed, light and utterly carefree, and tickled her baby under the chin. “Oh, Livita! He’s just grumpy because you said ‘Mama’ before ‘Uncle Al’.”

Then came the cake, lit with a single glowing candle that seemed to hold Liv in a trance, only broken as her mothers simultaneously leaned in to gently kiss her head.

Taylor whispered through the other voices that began to raise in song. “Happy birthday, angel…”

 

* * *

 

 

Squealing as she went, Liv paddled wildly, her tiny arms sending splashes in all directions.

“You’re doing it, Liv!” Taylor cried, arms outstretched, ready to scoop up her happy toddler. The child reached for her, a look of satisfaction on her cherubic face, and Taylor wrapped her into a hug. “Yay, Livi! Such a  _clever_  girl!”

A couple of feet away, Estela watched, beaming with pride. “No fear at all. Figures.”

She ducked under the calm sea waters, and Taylor pulled an exaggerated face of feigned confusion.

“Oh no! Where’s Mommy gone, Liv? Where’s Mommy?”

“Oh no!” Liv mimicked, turning her head this way and that. “She gone!” Boldly, she put her head under the water and paddled forward, secure in the knowledge that her mothers would let no harm come to her. Some two years old, she spent her waking hours exploring the big wide world, and testing the boundaries of her wriggly little body. The seas around La Huerta were just another playground to her. Confidently, she swam down and wrapped her arms around Estela’s shoulders, hugging tight as they surfaced together.

“ _Found Mommy!”_  she hollered.

With effortless strokes, Estela swam out further, unable to stop herself from grinning as Liv babbled contentedly from her safe perch on her back. She felt the toddler let go, endlessly trusting, tiny arms reaching gleefully skywards.

Taylor streaked forward until she was just about keeping up. She was a strong swimmer, but Estela was basically a porpoise.

“You be careful, Miss Liv!” And, of course, the toddler just laughed.

As Estela slowed to tread water, Liv fell forwards, hugging around her head and getting a face-full of wet hair. She nuzzled her face in.

“… Wuv you Mama…”

Estela’s mouth fell open, her eyes grew wide and then scrunched shut, teary. “ _Livi…”_  she gasped. “I love you too. I love you so much.”

“Woah, did she just…? Oh my god!” Taylor swam over and put her arms around her wife and daughter.

Giggling over her mothers’ excitement, Liv swung her arms back and forward around the back of Estela’s head and kissed her, before reaching out to Taylor. More confidently, she cried, “Wuv ‘ou Mama!”, and echoed Taylor’s delighted squeal.

“And I love  _you,_  Liv! Lovely, lovely Livi!” And Taylor kissed her, and kissed her, and kissed her some more, while Liv shouted with laughter, the whole time bouncing up and down on Estela’s shoulders.

“Wuv ‘ou! Wuv ‘ou! “Wuv ‘ou!”

 

* * *

 

 

Liv yanked her arm away from her mother’s grasp, her fierce glare never faltering. “I  _hate_ you!”

As if slapped across the face, Estela recoiled. She tried to steady herself, but her voice trembled as she spoke. “Liv, go to your room  _right now_. Don’t you dare make me tell you again.”

The small child’s breath was an angry pant. She stormed into her room and slammed the door. “I hate you;  _I wish you weren’t my mom!”_

Estela shuddered and buried her face in her hands, still crouched on the floor beside the front door, where she’d been restraining her daughter. And then she felt Taylor’s arms around her shoulders, and the gentlest of kisses against her temple.

“She’s upset… she didn’t mean it…” It seemed inevitable that one of them would cop those three words, the ones that stung like barbs in a parent’s heart. But on Mother’s Day of all things…  _Shit,_ thought Taylor. “Estela…” she whispered, “love, what happened?”

Staggering to her feet, Estela let herself be led to the couch, and she wrapped her wife in a hug. Damn, she needed that hug. Indignant shouts and screams rang out from Liv’s room. Out of the corner of Estela’s eye, she spotted the card that Liv had given her that very morning, the first she’d ever made all on her own, and could no longer hold back from weeping.

Taylor rubbed Estela’s back. “Deep breaths…”

“She kept running away from me,” Estela said with a sigh. “It’s simple and it’s stupid, but that’s all it was. She wanted to go after Taari and those other kids who thought they’d spotted the new sea guardian, and she wouldn’t hear ‘no’. I turned and she was gone… I caught her trying to hide away in one of their boats.” She roughly wiped her eyes. “And I… and I yelled at her. I grabbed her by her arm and dragged her all the way home.” A pause, and then her voice shook when she spoke again. “I… I think I scared her, Taylor… God, I’m used to people looking at me like that, but  _her…”_  Tears came anew. It was all new and frightening. She’d  _never_ lost her temper with Liv, no matter how hard the small child pushed her. And push she did; Liv was sweet and affectionate, but she had a will of iron.

“…Hey… when she’s calmed down, we’ll talk it out together. Look at me, baby… she  _knows_ you love her, that you’d never hurt her. Livi loves the bones of you. She looks at you like you’re her hero.” Taylor kept up her gentle caressing, kneading her wife’s shoulders, so tight and tense. Mother’s Day was always hard. “I guess we skipped through the terrible twos and got the terrible fours instead. She  _did_ go too far. Maybe we’ve gotta be stricter; it’s just been so nice to feel like we can have a loose rein on her.” She shook her head, lost in thoughts for a few moments. Their little Liv led a carefree life, oblivious to just how dangerous the world could be. They’d tried to give her that. Estela had been adamant that they give their daughter at least a few years before shattering the illusion. La Huerta these days was paradise, but even in their safe haven, the shadows remained. “Estela? Maybe it’s time we really talk to her about your mom? I know she’s still little, but she’d understand why today is hard for you.”

Estela’s eyes squeezed shut. Her mom would have been better at this. She’d have known how to handle Liv- she’d survived her own headstrong daughter after all. She’d know exactly what to say. Since her own child’s birth -really, since the pregnancy began- the aching feeling of missing her mom had taken a new depth for Estela. For all those years, grief had been anger, but it was only after that passed that the hollow sadness could take its place. For however much she felt herself moving on and letting go, there were some days when all that emotion returned with a vengeance… and with it, the fear of losing someone else dear to her heart. Liv could not have known why she’d overreacted as she did…

“Maybe…” she whispered. It occurred to her that the cries had quietened. Her own anger had fizzled out, and more than anything, she wanted to hold her little girl. “But right now, I just need to talk to her about what just happened.”

As her wife rose to her feet, Taylor looked at her with admiration. “Do you want me to come with you?” she asked.

Having considered for a moment, Estela nodded her head. “Yeah… yeah, I do. We’re a family, and we’re in this together. She needs to see that we’ve both got her back, and each other’s.” Hand-in-hand with Taylor, she approached Liv’s bedroom, her heart pounding.  _Here goes nothing…_

 

* * *

 

 

The banging of a small fist on the door woke Taylor from her slumber. A glance to the clock beside the bed told her that it was six on the dot; the earliest agreed wake-up time for special occasions. From behind, Estela nuzzled against her neck, and even sleepy as she was, Taylor’s lips curved into a smile.

“Happy birthday,  _mi amor._  Thirty-three…”

Taylor rolled over with a low ‘hmmph’, facing her partner. “Bullshit,” she murmured. “ _Technically,_ I’m only eleven.”

“If you say so. Not too old for being jumped on by a small  _bribona?_ ”

Liv bashed more forcefully on the door, and Taylor laughed.

“All right then, Livi!” she called, “Bring it, girl.”

The door flew open and Liv vaulted onto the bed, one arm outstretched, reaching to hug Taylor, the other in plaster and a sling. In her hand was a colourful piece of folded card.

“Haaaappy birthday, Mommy!”

“ _Oof!”_ Taylor grunted. Jesus, that child always seemed to find a way of sticking her knee into tender organs… “Thank you, sweet pea.” She wrapped her arms around Liv and found herself the recipient of a clumsy and rather wet kiss. “Just be careful of your arm… and my kidneys…”

After a few affectionate bounces on Taylor’s midsection, Liv tumbled sideways so that she was sandwiched between both of her moms. She hugged Estela’s arm with her left, and with her plastered right hand she offered the card to the birthday girl.

“For you.”

“Oh, thank you! Did you make this?” Taylor admired the messy illustration of a smiling sun looking down on a family of two women -one of whom wearing a party hat-, a little girl, two dogs and a purple cat. “Or was some clever artist spying on our family?”

Liv giggled. “It was me, silly! And, uh, Mama Estela helped.”

“I just held your hand steady,  _mija_. This was all you, Liv. You might actually be better with your left hand now.”

“Olivia Andromeda Montoya, you are such a talented artist!” Taylor gushed. “See, I can tell it’s you, because you’ve even drawn your blonde streak in your hair.”

The ‘blonde streak’ was a lock of Taylor’s hair that had been woven into Liv’s. The recently adopted fashion statement had come about on the day of her aunt and uncle’s wedding, at which the small girl had briefly dabbled in hairdressing. Inspired by her cousin Reggie’s dissatisfaction with his recent neat-and-tidy haircut, Liv had decided to help him out, utilising scissors, Jake -dead to the world after a long string of flights and several whiskeys-, and a big pot of glue. Her hair styling debut had been met with mixed reviews, but before her antics were found out by any of the attending adults, she’d managed to scissor off a great chunk from the back of an unknowing Taylor’s head. In her childlike naivete, it had been a compliment; she wanted to look like  _both_ her mothers. There  _had_ been some amount of shouting, a little bit of horrified screaming… but in the end, good humour prevailed. As far as Estela was concerned, that her daughter had such ingenuity was something to be proud of, especially as her actions had been made only out of love. After the initial shock and a much-needed discussion about haircuts and consent, Taylor -who now wore a pixie cut- found herself touched by the gesture. When she looked at the lock of blonde hair hanging by her daughter’s face, she saw an honest and loving tribute to their bond.

She opened up the card and read ‘ _Dear Mama Tay, have a day with hugs and kisses, you are 33, love from Liv, Ps I love you lots’_.

“Honey, that’s really special.” Taylor leaned in to give Liv a great big kiss on the forehead. “I must be the luckiest person in the world.”

 

* * *

 

 

A deep frown across her face, Taylor emerged from the Principal’s office. Of course, there was a first time for everything, but the first phone call to pick up her daughter from school after she’d slugged some other kid in the nose… that wouldn’t be one for the albums. Liv sat in the chair, just outside the door, her legs swinging nervously. Six years old, perhaps small for her age; even faced with an unavoidable reprimand, her dark eyes shone with defiance.

Taylor held out a hand. “Come on, Livi. We’ll talk in the car.”

With the little girl not forthcoming with details as she sat strapped into the car seat, it fell to Taylor to break the silence. Damn, she hated this. Their little angel had an attitude on her, but she’d never before been in  _real_ trouble. There had to be a good explanation for her to suddenly be lashing out.

“Why did you hit Jamie, Olivia? Did he do something to upset you?”

Liv scowled. “He’s a butthead. That’s why I hit him.”

The venom in the tiny child’s words took Taylor aback. It wasn’t exactly  _surprising_ that there might be something of an aggressive streak in her, but it certainly hadn’t surfaced before. “You broke his nose. That’s very bad.”

“I know how to hit good. Mama ‘Stel showed me.”

 _Fucking great,_ thought Taylor. “Hmmm…” she said instead, “I think when she showed you that, it was so you could protect yourself in an emergency. You only hit when there’s nothing else you can do to stay safe. We don’t just punch people because we’re mad. I  _know_ you know that.”

Liv was quiet, looking pointedly out the window.

“I’m gonna need you to give a real apology to this boy when you go back to school…”

“No.”

“Olivia…”

“Mommy, I hit him ‘cause he deserved it. I’m not sorry.”

Taylor bit her lip. She didn’t like the attitude, but her instincts told her there was something beneath it.  “Honey, what happened? Whatever this kid said or did, we can work out together how to fix it- without hitting.”

Liv’s brown eyes welled with tears as she looked down into her lap. Through the mirror, Taylor saw her daughter’s distress and immediately felt an aching desperation to wrap her arms around her.

“Hey, Liv… it’s okay. You can tell me what happened when we get home. It’s okay, sweetness; we’ll work this out over a cuddle.”

Mother and daughter sat side by side on the couch, Liv huddling up close, her head hanging. Taylor pecked a kiss to the child’s forehead and waited for her to open up.

“Mom, Jamie was being really mean. For, like, a long time. He says that I’m a lez-bean because I have two mommies, and we are all gonna go to hell for being disgusting. I don’t even know what that means, but he says it like its bad.”

Taylor sighed heavily. This was something she’d expected they’d encounter at some point, but certainly not this early on. She put an arm around Liv, giving her a gentle squeeze.

“That must have made you sad. Some people don’t understand that families can be made up of any combination of mommies, or daddies, or grandparents, or friends, or aunts… or… you get it, yeah? What matters is that we love each other.”

“So… we won’t go somewhere bad?”

“Darling, no. People who think things like that are too busy being angry at the world to remember what really matters. I don’t believe hell is a real thing, but I know that if it was, you definitely wouldn’t go there for loving another person.”

Liv finally looked up to her mother’s face, beseeching. “And, uh, he said more mean things.” She winced. “About Mama Estela.”

“Oh.” Taylor felt her heart sink further. Of course, standing up for her loved ones would be what would get Liv into hot water. Like mother, like daughter.

“He started saying that her beauty stripe makes her look like an ugly monster, and then all the other kids started saying it too. And pretending to run and hide at pick-up time.”

“Oh, Liv, I’m sorry.”

Liv sniffled and wiped her nose. “Today he drew a stripe on his eye and chased everyone around. So I hit him in the face.” She tugged on Taylor’s sleeve, her wet eyes pleading. “Please don’t tell her. I don’t want her to be sad.”

Taylor bundled the child into her lap and snuggled her close as she cried, stroking her silky hair. “I promise I won’t. But I need you to do something for me, okay?” She held Liv out, and gently tipped her chin so that their eyes met. “Next time someone’s being horrible like that, I need you to walk away. You’ve gotta walk away, ‘cause you deserve better than to have to listen to that kind of talk. And then I need you to tell a teacher what’s happening, ‘cause kids like that need to be dealt with. By a grown-up. Not by you and those flying fists of yours. Do we have a deal?”

“Deal.” Liv flung her arms around Taylor’s neck and hugged her with all her diminutive might.

Just then, the front door creaked open.

“Livita, are you okay,  _mija?_ ”

“ _Mommy_!” Liv jumped up and ran into Estela’s arms and nuzzled against her chest. “I’m okay.”

Taylor joined them. “Our little lady has been putting bullies to rights.  _Apparently,_ she’s inherited your strong right hook. But we’ve had a talk. It’s all fine.”

“God, Livi, I thought I told you- emergencies only?” Estela left several fierce kisses on the top of her daughter’s head. Getting a call that her beloved Liv had been sent to the office for fighting, protective instincts had flared up in an instant. If she’d have been hurt…

Looking up, Liv looked sheepish for the first time. “I’m sorry. It felt like an emergency. I know what to do next time, I promise.” She reached and softly kissed Estela’s long facial scar. Some dumb bully couldn’t stop her from seeing something beautiful. “I love you…”

“I love you too. My brave girl.”

“And Mama Tay?”

Estela chuckled and tugged Taylor closer so that Liv could impart the requisite sloppy kiss on her face. “And Mama Tay.”

“And Batman?”

“Well at least I got a mention before Batman…” Taylor rolled her eyes, laughing. It looked like Liv would be all right. She’d have another talk with the Principal when the suspension was over, but for the time being, it was hard to deny that having a few extra days with their daughter at home felt like a special treat. Taylor had made a promise to herself a long time ago that she’d cherish each moment, each memory made together. It wasn’t always easy, but feeling the arms of the two loves of her life around her… Liv’s suspension wasn’t the worst thing in the world.

 

* * *

 

 

Liv was biting her nails as the car pulled up at the gymnasium, her nerves plain to see. Now seven years old, she had grown but remained petite. Her dark hair, so long that she could sit on it, had been lovingly braided into a bun. Almost constantly overflowing with bravado, her apprehension could not go unnoticed; her eyes gave it all away at a glance.

“Livita… it’s okay to be nervous.” Estela sat down in the seat beside her daughter and took her hand. The big brown eyes that looked up to her were desperately seeking something… reassurance? “You can do this. But if you really don’t want to, no one’s gonna push.” She paused, her thumb stroking Liv’s hand. “Why don’t you tell us what you’re most worried about… maybe we can help?”

With a shuddering exhale, Liv started to speak, breaking the silence she’d held since they’d started the drive to her very first gymnastics showcase evening. “I don’t like people staring at me. When people stare at me… it’s never ‘cause they’re thinking nice things. It’s ‘cause they think I’m weird. If I screw up, they’ll laugh at me more.”

Taylor reached out from the front seat, and stroked the little girl’s knee. “That’s not what’s happening tonight, honey _._ I’m here, we’re _both_ here; and Uncle Diego, and Uncle Al, Auntie Grace and Reggie, -and Tio Abuelo came all the way from San Trobida- we’re here to support you. We’re going to be watching you because we’re  _proud_ of you. And because we love you.”

Liv’s bottom lip trembled.

“Olivia,” Estela spoke more firmly now. “Forget about everyone else. No one who talks garbage about you is worth caring about, you hear? When you’re up, look out and find me. I’ll be there, on your side. Always.”

At those words, Liv looked up. Her eyes met with Estela’s, gaze suddenly steely and determined as she nodded. “Okay. I’m ready.”

Sometime later, Liv’s family had gathered in the stands, ready to cheer her on. She had indeed drawn quite the little crowd of supporters, including her cousin and best friend, Reggie, who had come straight from school. As Liv stepped shakily out onto the floor, her caught her eye and poked out his tongue.

“Reginald!” Grace reprimanded lightly, unable to keep the laugh from her voice. Manners be damned, the grin that flashed across her niece’s face made it clear that Reggie had done exactly the right thing.

Uncertainty still in her eyes as she took to the balance beam, Liv searched the stands for her mothers. As she knew they would be, there they were, hand in hand, pride in her written all over their faces. She met Estela’s gaze, sending back a look of fierce confidence. A slight wobble, but then she caught herself with a deep breath. And then Liv turned a perfect cartwheel, finishing to the sound of applause with the broadest of grins across her face.

Now brimming with confidence, Liv seemed to fly through the showcase, and all the while she could feel the loving eyes of her family on her through every movement. She finished with a back handspring- pulling it off for only the third time ever- and skipped off the floor, triumphant, straight into Estela’s arms.

“Mom, did you see me? I  _did it!”_

“You killed it out there, Livita.”

Taylor joined in the tight hug, feeling the elation that shone out from her beloved child. “Hon, you looked incredible! Give me five, girl!”

Their hands met, and they were united. Together, and loved, and unafraid.

 

* * *

 

Sunlight brought colour into the hills over Elyys’tel, though for the time being, it was all too distant for the baby in Estela’s lap to make out. All baby Liv knew were the two people who stayed close to her, tickling, cuddling, kissing her.

Taylor reached for her phone and took a quick photograph. “I know some things are best not experienced through a camera lens, but she is not gonna stay like this for long. If that little smile isn’t worth capturing for forever, I honestly don’t know what is.”

Sucking contentedly on Estela’s fingers, Liv soothed herself after what was almost too much excitement. She kept glancing around, seeking eye contact with her mothers. When Taylor leaned in for yet another kiss, her smile returned, wide and gummy. She cooed, reaching out to touch and tipping over onto the dewy grass, guided by two pairs of hands until she was wriggling on her belly.

Estela scooched up against Taylor and looked out over their home, her head resting on her wife’s shoulder. She found herself grinning like an idiot at the feeling of her little Liv grasping at her feet. How much more perfect could life even get? “So, uh, you ready to keep going? There’s a whole lot of beautiful morning left for us to take in.”

Gently, Taylor took her wife’s face in her hands, touched by her easy radiance. Being absolutely blissed out on their family life could do that. And she kissed her, long and sweet. When she came away, she lingered with her face but a breath from Estela’s.

“That sounds wonderful,” she said, and then she couldn’t resist pecking one more kiss to her beloved’s lips, and another to Liv’s head as she bundled the infant into her arms. “What do you say, Livi? How about we go make some memories…”


End file.
